Donald Trump unleashed against electric cars. Those who drive them “have an illness” and are also a little crazy, says the president of the United States, only to later admit that he likes them a little too. But well, up to a certain point. The head of the White House has never hidden his passion for oil. And according to him, the green turning point can also be postponed to the next millennium.
Trump and the 2030 obligation (which never happened)
“We have a thousand years’ worth of gasoline and that’s what people prefer,” Trump said during a rally in Las Vegas. It’s not quite like that, but rhetorical exaggerations are a specialty of the house. “You know, I put an end to the requirement for electric cars” adds the president of the United States, referring to the presidential decree signed by Biden, which provided for a 50% percentage of electric vehicles by 2030.
“I don’t want to talk about it because Elon (Musk, ed.) wasn’t exactly happy, but I had to do it. We love Elon. But I had to block that decree because it said that within a very short period of time, like 2030, everyone would have to have an electric car, even if there was no way to charge it.” In reality, the executive order signed by Biden was not binding, but that’s it.
Trump: “They have a disease, these people are crazy”
The tycoon’s show then begins. “Have you ever seen road signs while driving an electric car?” he says. “They have a disease, you know, it’s a disease. They freak out. They’re driving and they realize the battery is dying. They start thinking about it when it’s three-quarters full. OK. It loses a little bit, and they think, ‘Where do I go now?’. You’re driving down the highway and you see a sign: charging station, with an arrow, 89 miles to the right. These people are crazy. And I like electric cars.”
Video of Trump’s speech
“We have unlimited resources, what a great thing”
Ironies aside, a fairly clear position emerges from Trump’s speech: he is not against electric cars as such, but the idea that the government should encourage their adoption through obligations or incentives, effectively penalizing petrol cars. “You know, despite all the taxes and all the concessions we have granted, only 7% of the cars sold are electric” he adds. “But the point is we have unlimited resources, we have more oil and gas than any other country in the world. Now add Venezuela to that. Add that and we get to have 60% of the world’s oil and gas, including Venezuela. Think about it. What a great thing.” The percentage is actually much lower. But Donald likes to exaggerate.